SYSCO Corporation (NYSE:SYY) investors should be aware of an increase in hedge fund interest of late.
In today’s marketplace, there are a multitude of indicators shareholders can use to analyze stocks. A couple of the most innovative are hedge fund and insider trading activity. At Insider Monkey, our research analyses have shown that, historically, those who follow the top picks of the elite fund managers can outclass their index-focused peers by a solid amount (see just how much).
Equally as integral, bullish insider trading sentiment is another way to parse down the world of equities. As the old adage goes: there are plenty of incentives for a corporate insider to cut shares of his or her company, but just one, very simple reason why they would behave bullishly. Various empirical studies have demonstrated the valuable potential of this tactic if you know what to do (learn more here).
Consequently, let’s take a gander at the recent action encompassing SYSCO Corporation (NYSE:SYY).
How are hedge funds trading SYSCO Corporation (NYSE:SYY)?
At the end of the fourth quarter, a total of 14 of the hedge funds we track were bullish in this stock, a change of 8% from one quarter earlier. With hedgies’ capital changing hands, there exists a few notable hedge fund managers who were boosting their holdings significantly.
Of the funds we track, Donald Yacktman’s Yacktman Asset Management had the most valuable position in SYSCO Corporation (NYSE:SYY), worth close to $906 million, comprising 5.4% of its total 13F portfolio. Coming in second is Jean-Marie Eveillard of First Eagle Investment Management, with a $764 million position; the fund has 2.7% of its 13F portfolio invested in the stock. Remaining hedge funds with similar optimism include Ric Dillon’s Diamond Hill Capital, Phill Gross and Robert Atchinson’s Adage Capital Management and Tom Gayner’s Markel Gayner Asset Management.
Consequently, key hedge funds have been driving this bullishness. Citadel Investment Group, managed by Ken Griffin, established the most outsized position in SYSCO Corporation (NYSE:SYY). Citadel Investment Group had 9 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. David Harding’s Winton Capital Management also initiated a $1 million position during the quarter. The other funds with brand new SYY positions are Martin D. Sass’s MD Sass, SAC Subsidiary’s Sigma Capital Management, and Steven Cohen’s SAC Capital Advisors.
Insider trading activity in SYSCO Corporation (NYSE:SYY)
Bullish insider trading is at its handiest when the company in focus has seen transactions within the past six months. Over the last half-year time frame, SYSCO Corporation (NYSE:SYY) has seen zero unique insiders purchasing, and 7 insider sales (see the details of insider trades here).
Let’s also examine hedge fund and insider activity in other stocks similar to SYSCO Corporation (NYSE:SYY). These stocks are United Natural Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:UNFI), The Chefs Warehouse, Inc (NASDAQ:CHEF), Spartan Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPTN), Nash-Finch Company (NASDAQ:NAFC), and AMCON Distributing Co. (NYSEAMEX:DIT). This group of stocks are the members of the food wholesale industry and their market caps are similar to SYY’s market cap.
| Company Name | # of Hedge Funds | # of Insiders Buying | # of Insiders Selling |
| United Natural Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:UNFI) | 9 | 0 | 2 |
| The Chefs Warehouse, Inc (NASDAQ:CHEF) | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Spartan Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPTN) | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| Nash-Finch Company (NASDAQ:NAFC) | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| AMCON Distributing Co. (NYSEAMEX:DIT) | 2 | 0 | 0 |
With the returns shown by our time-tested strategies, retail investors should always keep an eye on hedge fund and insider trading activity, and SYSCO Corporation (NYSE:SYY) is no exception.
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